HS Coach Confirms Star Jackson is a Panther!!!

Former 4 Star QB will enroll June 14th and will be eligible this Fall

Former Alabama quarterback Star Jackson has elected to transfer to Georgia State for the final three years of his collegiate career, Errick Lowe, Jackson's coach at Lake Worth (Fla.) High School, confirmed today to the Press-Register.

Jackson spent the weekend looking for an apartment in Atlanta and will enroll in summer school at GSU, according to Lowe.

"Nothing is going to be handed to him," Lowe said. "He's going to have to go in there and work his butt off. But if he works hard, he'll get a chance to play right away."

Link: http://blog.al.com/bamabeat/2010/05/transferring_tide_qb_star_jack.html

Tommy Hicks from AL.com: Mid-majors should not wait for chips to fall

With conference re-alignment on the horizon he has an interesting take on what conferences like Conference USA should do:

Here’s one idea: Take the East Division of C-USA — East Carolina, Southern Miss, Memphis, UAB, Marshall and Central Florida — and combine it with Sun Belt members South Alabama, Troy, Middle Tennessee, Western Kentucky, Florida International and Florida Atlantic.


It’s simple, allows for in-state rivalries and helps teams reach into key recruiting states such as Florida and Alabama. It is also more advantageous for team and fan travel.

There are other possibilities. Maybe drop Marshall in favor of Georgia State and the Atlanta recruiting area and a more regionally acceptable matchup. Or bump up the membership to 14 or even 16 teams and grab some other attractive programs.

Link: http://blog.al.com/tommy-hicks/2010/05/sports_columnist_tommy_hicks_mid-majors_should_not_wait_for_chips_to_fall.html

My take: If Conference USA came calling, we'd be accept there in a heartbeat. No brainer.

College Football Preview: Sporting News gives us our 1st preview

Thanks to my man Panama for the find:

In their inaugural year of college football, the Panthers will run the gamut of opponents, beginning against tiny Shorter College of the NAIA and ending their campaign with mammoth Alabama, the 2009 FBS national champions. The team will also play Old Dominion, which GSU will join as a member of the Colonial Athletic Association in 2012. Bill Curry, the former head coach at Georgia Tech (1980-86), Alabama (1987-89) and Kentucky (1990-96) before becoming an ESPN analyst (1997-2007) will lead the fledgling program as its first coach.

Curry says 5-11, 175-pound running back Travis Evans is perhaps his best offensive threat. The redshirt freshman rushed for 1662 yards and 17 touchdowns on 166 carries as a senior at Williston High in Florida. Anchoring the offensive line are freshman guard Michael Davis (6-3, 315 pounds) and junior center Ben Jacoby (6-2, 275) a transfer from Ball State. Sophomore linebacker Brad Chahoy (5-11, 202) a Georgia Southern transfer, is the player to watch on defense.

Football Eligibility Chart

http://www.panthertalk.com/wp-content/uploads/GSU-Football-Eligibility-Chart.htm

We are down one WR but overall still standing.  I expect that WR will be a focus this recruiting cycle.

5 Reason Star Jackson Should Come To State

My man Saint does a great write up. Worth the read:

http://www.panthertalk.com/2010/05/19/five-reasons-star-jackson-should-come-to-gsu/

We'll know more in the next 2 weeks.

Alabama QB could transfer to Georgia State

New Starter?

"As a redshirt sophomore, going into next season as third on the depth chart behind a redshirt freshman doesn't look good," Lowe said. "He doesn't feel like he's going to get an opportunity to play. ... I don't think he sees himself getting a legitimate shot of playing in the next couple of years."

Tuscaloosa News Link: http://www.tidesports.com/article/20100518/NEWS/100519471/1011?Title=Jackson-exploring-transfer-options

AL.com Link: http://blog.al.com/bamabeat/2010/05/tide_backup_qb_star_jackson_ex.html

My take: Star comes (which looks like a foregone conclusion) and is given the keys for the next 3 seasons.  He has a national championship ring and that means a ton.  One of the first questions out of an offensive recruits mouth is "Who's your QB?"  This would also signal an end to a current QBs time on the roster.  My guess is Drew Little.

Panthers Add Rashaad Richardson to Signing Class

ATLANTA-Rashaad Richardson, a 6-4 shooting guard from Oldsmar Christian Academy, has signed a national letter of intent with the Georgia State basketball program, head coach Rod Barnes announced.

Richardson led his team in scoring with 26.5 points per game at Oldsmar Christian in Oldsmar, Fla., where he teamed with fellow Georgia State signee Harold Doby, who signed with the Panthers last fall.

"Rashaad is an excellent addition to our recruiting class, giving us another long, athletic player on the perimeter," said Barnes. "He is a good scorer who can really drive to the basket and he also possesses a strong mid-range game."

A native of James Island, S.C., Richardson averaged 19 points, five rebounds and five assists as a junior at James Island Charter High School before moving to Oldsmar.

My take: Tremendous get by Barnes and crew. He had a ton of high major interest.  This bumps the signing class to 7.  Wave goodbye to either Mi'kyel Nero or James Fields.

ESPN Link: http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/player?recruitId=55213&season=2010&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fplayer%3frecruitId%3d55213%26season%3d2010

Georgia State Sports Link: http://www.georgiastatesports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=12700&atclid=204944633

Interesting Article: Should We Ditch Football?

http://chronicle.com/article/Should-We-Ditch-Football-/65356/

Football Season Ticket Update

From PAC Email:

In preparation for the actual allocation of football season tickets in the Georgia Dome, all current football season ticketholders have been placed in rank order based on Panther Athletic Club (PAC) Priority Point totals.

Football season ticketholders can expect to receive in the next 7-10 days a letter listing a selection date and time, as well as detailed instructions on the seat selection process. Please know that individuals who have requested to sit adjacent to other ticketholders have been assigned similar seat selection times, based on the lowest Priority Points total within the group. The Priority Seating Selection process is tentatively scheduled to begin on Monday, May 24th and will run through Friday, May 28th.

Sports Arena Makeover Continues

End Zone seating coming this Fall

Multiple sources are reporting that the end zone walls in the Sports Arena will be collapsed and limited seats will be placed behind the baskets giving a more traditional feel. This along with the new logo on the floor, new red free throw line and paint job (link: http://www.georgiastatesports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=12700&atclid=204941272) are expected to be completed in the next few weeks.

My take: Any addition is a good addition.  We can continue to add small tweaks to the Arena in the next few summers and see how the team continues to (hopefully) ascend.